Misha is nearly 11 (August) and has been doing these little twitches for a split second every once in a while. It's like a very, very mild shudder and he doesn't appear to be in any pain and seems very mentally with it. His only problem at last vet visit (7ish months ago) was some arthritis which he takes rimadyl (1 or 2 doses every 2-3 months if he's flung himself about and sore). Other than that he's been really healthy and all tail wags. Any advice?

Caraline

22nd June 2007, 05:09 AM

Not sure if this is related, but I've had 2 dogs that have had seizures and they often seem to start with & be associated with the head shudders.

casshon

22nd June 2007, 08:42 AM

Cassie did this for years. She did have one seizure and it was after this that the shaking started. The vet could not explain what these shudders were. It never seemed to affect her. Now Honey (12 yrs) shakes a little bit but nowhere near the amount Cassie did.

Maybe someone else can shed some light?

Joan bamborough

22nd June 2007, 10:55 AM

hello, I read with interest your message regards twitching in your 11yrs old baby, Can I say I am relevantly new to the forum and my first message was regards to twitching., my neurologist said it was a Myronic Twitch, however knowone in the forum have heard of it,he was on rimadyl for a week before he had a cataract operation on both eyes and it was after taking it for a few days that he developed the twitch, which starts with his eyes blinking a lot then the tremor goes throughout his body, he doesnt seem to be in any pain whatsoever, and is very lively, I feel he is a little underwieght for his age of 9mths (11lbs)he is going for an MRI scan on Tuesday of next week so I am hoping it will give me peace of mind as to what is going on (if anything).I will definetly be in touch when I find out as it may help you . Give him a big hug from me and my babies.

Caraline

23rd June 2007, 04:12 AM

I have never heard of Myronic Twitch, but am wondering if it is Myoclonic Twitch?

Joan bamborough

23rd June 2007, 08:10 AM

It maybe as you say MYOCLONIC Twitch!!, as I have a bit of a hearing problem, may have heard the vet wrong

Caraline

23rd June 2007, 08:57 AM

Ok, a myoclonic twitch is an involuntary spasm of the muscles and can be as innocent as that jump you can do when you are just falling asleep, or the little twitch you can get at the corner of your eye, but it can also be associated with a condition called myoclonic epilepsy which causes abnormal body movements.

Joan bamborough

23rd June 2007, 09:40 AM

Than You Caraline, information appreciated. I will know for definite when he has had his MRI scan on Tuesday.

Cathryn

23rd June 2007, 09:43 AM

Good Luck with the MRI, will be thinking of you, having been through that recently I know how you are feeling!

Caraline

23rd June 2007, 12:55 PM

Let us know how he goes with his MRI Joan. Good luck. :xfngr:

MishathePooh

16th July 2008, 04:08 AM

Hmmm, the twitching seems to have gotten mildly worse. I'm wondering if I should ask the vet for a neurologist referral, or just keep watch on him since the twitches don't appear to affect him at all. I'm also curious to see if they are just a bit worse in the summer, as that's when I posted last time as well.

Cleo's Person

16th July 2008, 10:30 AM

I have no advice just want to say I'm sorry Misha seems to have gotten worse. Perhaps getting the twitching checked out by a specialist might be a good idea. Is it causing him discomfort? If so I would definitely seek some expert advice. Keep us posted on how he's doing.

Cathy Moon

16th July 2008, 11:56 AM

If you're still giving your dogs Rimadyl, you might want to discontinue it. I couldn't find Pfizer's informational sheet that is supposed to accompany the drug Rimadyl, but I did find reference to it on the FDA website.

Normally I wouldn't post information this old (1999), but none of my vets over the years has ever prescribed Rimadyl to my dogs.
FDA report: http://www.fda.gov/cvm/CVM_Updates/rimadyl2.html

TillyTommy

16th July 2008, 02:36 PM

This started to happen to my Tilly early in the year. I would certainly ask to see a specialist. Tilly's were very mild and did not effect her but that has changed now and she is on Epiphen. She has several other problems now but fingers crossed for you:xfngr: Take care

MishathePooh

16th July 2008, 10:15 PM

It doesn't cause discomfort, he'll just twitch a moment. Before it was only when he was sitting - but my "worse" is that now if he's standing and tremors, he will have a misstep and appear to slowly trip (as in his foot moves, no psychedelically high) for a second. Then all is back to normal. The last time he had Rimadyl was for a lung flush and dental in about February, but he hasn't needed it for arthritis since last October :-) I guess I should ask my vet what she thinks - though usually the general vets don't know, so maybe a specialist can help us out. Thanks for the info!

As for the rimadyl - do you know what else they can use in place of it? Maybe tramadol?

MishathePooh

25th September 2009, 01:17 AM

The twitching has continued to worsen. Again, he does not seem to have discomfort but I'm starting to truly worry. He does not twitch when exercising. The twitches started out about once a week 2 years ago and now it's up to a couple times an hour.

We did the PSOM study at Ohio State University in January and he was evaluated by a dermatologist, cardiologist and neurologist. He had a CAT scan with no unusual findings. He is deaf by the BAER test. He has also been seen by a holistic vet and regular vet. None of the vets knew what the twitching was.

What should I do?

FluffyBubbles

8th November 2012, 10:08 PM

The twitching has continued to worsen. Again, he does not seem to have discomfort but I'm starting to truly worry. He does not twitch when exercising. The twitches started out about once a week 2 years ago and now it's up to a couple times an hour.

We did the PSOM study at Ohio State University in January and he was evaluated by a dermatologist, cardiologist and neurologist. He had a CAT scan with no unusual findings. He is deaf by the BAER test. He has also been seen by a holistic vet and regular vet. None of the vets knew what the twitching was.

What should I do?

Hi there,

I know this is a very old thread but I joined this board specifically to ask whether the problem with Misha was ever figured out?! I found this thread when googling my baby's symptoms, and this last post especially seems to be *exactly* what he is experiencing. That is, a strange 'twitch', that doesn't cause pain, hasn't been figured out by regular or holistic vets, doesn't seem to be impacted by his eating/sleeping/exercise patterns, and that he can actually stop if I clap and snap him out of it (i.e. it isn't completely involuntary). I am so perplexed by it, and really worry about him, so I'm hoping I might be able to stumble over an answer here!

Thanks in advance to anyone who has some advice :)

Joanie Davison

12th November 2012, 02:13 AM

My 10 year old has been doing this as well, he has been on Rimadyl, daily, for over a year. He does not seem to be in any pain. He has been completely deaf for 7 years. Any suggestions or comments would be great.